Lunar New Year Stories for Kids
Lunar New Year is celebrated by families across China, Korea, Vietnam and many other places and communities, each in their own way, and for many it is the biggest family meal of the year. A Lunar New Year story for kids works best when it stays with what a child notices: cleaning the house to sweep out the old year, red decorations on the door, folding dumplings, red envelopes from grandparents, and the noise of everyone together.
Here is a complete Lunar New Year story to read aloud, free. Traditions differ from family to family, so if yours celebrates differently, a personalized story can be set the way your family does it. It takes about thirty seconds.
Mei and the Dumpling With the Coin
A free story to read aloud tonight
For three days before the new year, Mei’s family cleaned the whole apartment, to sweep out the old year and leave room for the new one. Mei was in charge of the bottom shelves, which she said was the most important job.
Then the red things went up. A red paper on the front door, red lanterns in the window, and a bowl of oranges on the table, because Grandma said oranges meant good luck.
On New Year’s Eve, everybody folded dumplings at the kitchen table. Grandma’s were perfect little moons. Mei’s were lumpy. Grandma hid a coin inside one of them and said whoever found it would have a lucky year.
Dinner was long and loud. There was fish, and noodles that you weren’t supposed to cut, because long noodles meant a long life, and Mei slurped hers all the way to the end. Then she bit into a lumpy dumpling and went “Ow!” It was the coin.
Before bed, Grandpa gave her a red envelope with both hands, and she took it with both hands and said, “Thank you, Grandpa. Happy New Year.” Outside, somewhere far away, firecrackers were popping.
Mei put the coin and the red envelope under her pillow, which felt lucky, and fell asleep in the warm, full apartment, with the whole new year still waiting to begin.
When is Lunar New Year?
It follows the lunar calendar, so the date changes every year, landing between late January and mid February. In 2027 it falls on February 6.
Our family celebrates differently. Can the story match?
Yes. The story above follows some common Chinese traditions, and families from Korea, Vietnam and elsewhere celebrate in their own ways. When you make a personalized story, type how your family celebrates into the “My own…” box, like tteokguk for Seollal or bánh chưng for Tết, and the story is set there with your child as the hero.